Sipping for Songbirds
Three-quarters of the world’s coffee farms destroy forest habitat to grow coffee under full sun. With thoughtful consumption, coffee drinkers can help save songbirds one cup at a time.
March 2018 iNaturalist Vermont Photo-Observation of the Month
Congratulations to Peggy and Marc Faucher for winning the March 2018 iNaturalist Vermont photo-observation of the month contest. The images of a wet Mink hunting along the shoreline was the most popular photo-observation.
A Field Guide to April 2018
In April the northern forest is laid bare with cold desire. Sight, sounds, and smell – April leaves none of our senses void. Here’s our guide to some of the joys of April.
Mountain Birdwatch Brings a Mountain of Data to eBird
Since 2010 alone, several hundred Mountain Birdwatch citizen scientists have conducted 18,636 five-minute point counts at nearly 750 remote locations in the mountains of New York and New England. Recently, we uploaded more than 37,000 checklists spanning the last 17 years of the program to eBird.
Outdoor Radio: Tracking Moose Health
Moose populations in Vermont and New Hampshire have undergone a rapid population decline for a variety of reasons. We join Jake Debow, a graduate student of the University of Vermont and biologist with Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department, to trek through deep snow near Maidstone Lake to find out more about the plight of Moose in the region.
Where Are Common Loons in Late Winter?
If you travel to the coast this late winter or early spring, bring your binoculars and scan nearshore waters. You’ll likely find loons, and you might be lucky enough to hear one call.
Breeding Yard Birds More Successful with Native Plants
The idyllic setting for nesting songbirds in our backyards is one filled with native plants, according to research published last summer.
February 2018 iNaturalist Vermont Photo-Observation of the Month
Congratulations to Kyle Tansley for winning the February 2018 iNaturalist Vermont photo-observation of the month contest. His image of a running Bobcat was the most popular photo-observation.
A Field Guide to March 2018
On Tuesday, March 20th at 12:15 PM spring arrives in the north. While the sun may be predictable, March weather is not. March is a month of battles between warm and cold, between winter’s refusal to leave and spring’s insistence on coming. So here’s some signs of spring in this Field Guide to March.
Searching for Snowy Owls
Like ghosts from the Arctic, Snowy Owls have descended from the far north this winter. Join VCE biologists Sara Zahendra and Kent McFarland on Outdoor Radio as they try to find a white bird in the white snowy world of Dead Creek Wildlife Management Area and talk about the natural history of Snowy Owls along the way.
Team VCE-BIOECO Perseveres on Cuba’s Pico Turquino
VCE’s late January field expedition into the rugged Sierra Maestra mountains of eastern Cuba featured abnormally high rainfall, majestic cloud forests, grueling pre-dawn hikes, lively interactions with our Cuban partners, and… 7 Bicknell’s Thrushes. As always with this enigmatic songbird, more questions were raised than answered, but VCE’s work to clarify the species’ overwinter status on Cuba is making solid progress.
Outdoor Radio: Winter Gulls
We joined Bryan Pfeiffer, a VCE research associate and avid birder, at Grow Compost in Waterbury to witness a winter gull spectacle. Hundreds of gulls (and other birds) hang out amid this huge expanse of compost enjoying an endless feast, including a few rare arctic visitors like Glaucous Gulls. Listen to Outdoor Radio.
